This is a plantation near the top of Win Hill, a high peak near Bamford in the Peak District. I emerged from a steep climb through the trees to find the winter sun creating a wonderful light. The image was created using a slow shutter speed and a little vertical camera movement during the exposure.The Hope Valley in Derbyshire. This is taken mid-morning on a crisp winter day. The mist was still hanging in the valleys and together with some smoke from a few chimneys was creating a magnical hazy vista.During the winter the high moors of Kinder and Bleaklow provide a wonderful snow covered wilderness. It's hard to imagine that this is only a short drive from Manchester or Sheffield. The days are short, so I tend to be walking off the hills as the sun sets. On this occasion, the cloud inversion had remained in place all day.This is a view of the village of Hathersage in the Peak District, taken as the sun rose one December morning. I love the layers created by the mist and the contours of the land. The church in the center of the image is St Michael and All Angel's Church, which dates back to the 14th century.The Hope Valley, Peak District. A misty morning and weak winter sun create beautiful colours. For those of your familiar with the geography of the Peak District, you can make out the contours of various gritstone edges: Owler Torr, Mother Cap and Millstone on the left, and the Burbage valley basin on the right.Win Hill, Lose Hill and the Kinder Plateau forming hazy layers at sunset. If you look closely you will see a group of paragliders.With such short days in mid winter I often return from adventures on the hills after nightfall. It had been snowing steadily all day, and with a light wind, a vertical strip of snow had been plastered onto each tree. In near darkness, I used a long exposure and some intentional camera movement to capture the silent scene.Fresh snow means I'm breaking trail on Kinder.Any climber will recognise the red sandstone of South Africa's Rocklands. Here, the sun was setting over a rock plateau, scattered with truck sized boulders.In mid winter, the Snake Pass is frequently closed due to snow and ice. Even when open, it can be a slow and treacherous drive. After carefully negotiating my way to the top of the pass and parking my car safely off the road, I was rewarded with the most fabulous day breaking trail through the snow.Sheffield's Botanical Gardens can provide the photographer with a couple of hours of subject matter at any time of year. In early spring, the cherry blossom was stealing the show.Dawn over the wild Big Moor on the outskirts of Sheffield. With the roaring of rutting deer, it felt more like the plains of Africa than the Peak District.A cold and windy night atop the Bleaklow moors meant that little ice flags had formed on the cotton grass.It's a long walk out to the tip of Blakeney Point on the North Norfolk coast and it can feel as wild as anywhere in the UK.I always wake with dawn when I'm camping, and I can't stay put. While the rest of the party enjoyed a small lie-in, I explored the perimeter of the small island we had made our home for the night.Spring in Sheffield's Botanical Gardens, and the cherry blossom is in full bloom.Sheffield's rivers are a wonderful reminder of the city's industrial past. Various dams were constructed which fed water powered workshops, some dating back to 1500 where skilled craftsmen would grind sharp cutting blades. The pivotal role these water wheels played in Sheffield's cuttlery industry continued well into the 20th century. These days, the dam provides a home for wildlife, including the local kingfisher, and Shepherd's wheel has been restored thanks to lottery funding.The snow covered peaks of Kinder and Bleaklow made a mystical scene with the cloud rolling over the hills and sinking into the valley below.The Hope Valley in Derbyshire with the morning mist and smoke from farmhouses creating a hazy atmosphere.The Castle Hill basin in the Southern Alps of New Zealand has a magical atmosphere. Surrounded by snow capped mountains the mystical rock formations are steeped in folklore. In fact, on visiting the boulders, the Dalai Lama himself is reported to have pronounced it to be the spiritual center of the universe! Gritstone edges of the Dark Peak District catch the last rays of sun emerging from stormy skies.Dawn over the wild Big Moor on the outskirts of Sheffield, looking more like the plains of Africa than the Peak District.Castle Hill on New Zealand's South Island is home to hundreds of magestic rock formations, perched on a limestone plateau, and resembling a castle. Rock climbers from around the world pay pilgrimage to the area to climb on the uniquely shaped cliffs.
